BYRON BAY SHINES
The once sleepy surfing town of Byron Bay has come a long way from its humble origins; and while it still retains its laid-back charm, new luxury properties and event venues, innovative restaurants and a host of 'uniquely Byron' experiences have seen the region come of age.
More elements in Byron
Byron Bay's showcase resort, Elements of Byron, filled a need for a high-calibre resort in the region when it opened almost two years ago. In October this year, the 20-hectare resort, which is located on a private beachfront and surrounded by rainforest, will complete a major expansion, adding 99 new villas to its existing 94 villas, including 68 two-bedroom deluxe beach houses featuring outdoor rooms with fireplaces and veranda bathhouses.
Elements of Byron has successfully hosted many intimate and large-scale events in its relatively short lifetime, and its spectacular location and facilities have left a lasting impression on business events planners and their guests. Outdoor event spaces take full advantage of Byron Bay's year-round sub-tropical climate and stunning natural environment, such as the Heart of the Bay Beachfront Marquee, with its 360-degree views across the ocean to the Byron Lighthouse, which can host up to 300 guests banquet-style or 450 cocktail-style. The Greens, a lush expanse bordered by the Pacific Ocean and natural forest can host events for up to 3,000 people.
Byron Bay has also long been regarded as a centre of wellness and rejuvenation, and the resort has also expanded its wellness activities with guided rainforest, birdwatching, horse-riding along the beach, and history tours. Complimentary activities include daily yoga classes, tennis, an outdoor fitness circuit and indoor gym. www.elementsofbyron.com.au
On the menu
The Byron Bay region produces an abundance of exceptional fresh produce and has become a champion of farm-to-fork trends, as well as producing some of the best cooking schools in Australia.
Three Blue Ducks restaurant at The Farm is an impressive location for an event with a difference, where the focus is on connecting people with the land. Set on 80 acres of pristine farmland amongst a community of growers who share a passion for growing 100 per cent organic produce. Three Blue Ducks head chefs Darren Robertson and Mark LaBrooy are renowned for their 'real food' philosophy, sourcing ingredients directly from the farm and surrounding areas, and can design a specialty menu or degustation experience based on your event type.
The Three Blue Ducks restaurant seats up to 90 guests; and provides catering for all other event spaces on site at The Farm, such as The Barn, which can accommodate up to 180 guests banquet-style or 250 cocktail-style. www.threeblueducks.com
Owner-chef of Taste Byron Bay, Terase Davidson, followed her dream of running her own food based business, combining her love of cooking with more than 20 years of experience in corporate event management. Terase has exclusive access to some of Byron Bay's premiere private venues and offers a range of services including team building events, private dining, food tours, and cooking classes, showcasing the region's outstanding produce. She will guide your group on a gourmet voyage of discovery around Byron Bay and the surrounding hinterland, meeting producers, farmers and chefs and providing a unique insight into the region's many culinary gems. Taste Byron Bay can cater for groups from 10 to 120 people.www.tastebyronbay.com
A natural star
The first place in Australia to see the sun each day, natural beauty abounds wherever you are in Byron Bay. Groups can walk the one of the many walking trails or join a scenic joy flight above the magnificent coastline. For the ultimate adrenaline rush, try a mountain bike tour through subtropical rainforests and ancient volcanic terrain; or learn to surf with an international surf coach.
One of the best ways for your group to get up close and personal with the watery wonderland is on a group kayaking tour. Go Sea Kayak Byron Bay will help your group feel the excitement of paddling with the bottlenose dolphins, turtles and whales (in season) that call the Cape Byron Marine Park home. Go Sea Kayak can host groups of up to 34 people at a time. www.goseakayakbyronbay.com.au
With its sweeping surf beaches, superb scenery, ancient rainforests, and year-round mild climate, Byron Bay is an inspiring destination to reward, rejuvenate and re-motivate your team.
ADELAIDE'S BUSINESS EVENTS BOOM
Rich in arts and culture, culturally diverse, easily accessible, and relaxed, these are the most common phrases used to describe Adelaide, South Australia's capital, but one could also add fun to the list, as Adelaide is recognised as one of the best festival cities in the world, with major events almost every month that can be integrated into an incentive program, such as the Santos Tour Down Under cycling race or Barossa Vintage Food and Wine Festival.
One of the most exciting new developments is the multi-million-dollar Riverbank Events and Entertainment precinct near the city centre, with walkways connecting venues including the Adelaide Convention Centre, Adelaide Oval, Festival Centre and Adelaide Casino, along with a host of riverside restaurants and bars. The project is slated for completion by the end of this year. A spate of new hotels has already opened or are scheduled to come online in the next 12 months.
New life for grand old dame
Linking to the Riverbank Entertainment Precinct, the beautifully renovated 170-room Mayfair Hotel, housed in a former 1930s heritage-listed building, is the city's newest five-star boutique hotel. The 'Romanesque' style building is complemented by what the architects call a 'jewel box' addition, which includes two restaurants showcasing South Australia's innovative food and wine, and an exclusive rooftop Hennessy Lounge. Other event spaces include the Diamond Room (a combination of the smaller Pearl and Ruby rooms) which can accommodate 100 guests banquet-style or 125 cocktail-style. www.mayfairhotel.com.au
Consuming passions
South Australia is spoiled for choice when it comes to superb local produce and fine dining experiences, and Adelaide boasts more restaurants per capita than any other city in Australia.
One restaurant that has built an enviable reputation for both its delicious and beautifully crafted food and its innovative use of native ingredients is Orana, named Australia's Restaurant of the Year in the Gourmet Traveller Restaurant Awards 2018. Sit down at a table at Orana (an Aboriginal word that means 'welcome') and your guests will embark on an immersive dining experience featuring exotic native Australian ingredients, such as quandong, lemon myrtle and zig zag wattle, the result of chef Jock Zonfrillo's years of research of Australia's land, produce, people and history. The cuisine here is based around the seasons, not just the traditional four, but the six-season calendar recognised by Australian Aboriginal cultures. The intimate restaurant seats just 25 guests and offers a tasting menu of up to 20 courses. Downstairs, sister restaurant, Blackwood, applies similar ideas to its Australian-influenced menu. www.restaurantorana.com
Life is a Cabernet
Adelaide is the wine capital of Australia and is internationally recognised as one of the nine Great Wine Capitals of the World, boasting more than 200 cellar doors within an hours' drive from the city centre.
One of the most famous is Penfolds Magill Estate, just ten kilometres from the city. It is one of two of Penfold's wine estates in South Australia, and the home of Penfold's Grange, widely regarded as Australia's finest wine.
For the ultimate incentive, guests can walk in the footsteps of winemaking legends on a guided tour of the vineyard and its history, including visiting the underground cellars and the place where Grange Hermitage creator, Max Schubert, kept his secret stash; and tastings of an exclusive selection of the estate's most coveted wines. To complete the experience, your group could end the day with a seven-course degustation of South Australian produce at the award-winning Magill Estate Restaurant, with each course matched with a wine carefully selected by the estate's sommelier www.penfolds.com
About an hour from Adelaide lies the Barossa Valley, one of Australia's oldest and finest wine growing regions. One of the country's oldest vineyards, Seppeltsfield, is famous for its Centennial Collection - an unbroken lineage of tawny port dating from 1878 to the current year. Accommodating groups of 10 in their 100-year-old cellar, the winery offers a Taste Your Birth Year experience, providing members of your group the rare opportunity to taste a tawny port from the year they were born.
Heritage-listed function rooms with seating from 12 up to 500 and spacious outdoor areas offer the perfect venue for an event with a focus on superb food and wine. The winery offers groups numerous unique experiences, like the Seppeltsfield Segway tour which takes your group around the property's stunning gardens and heritage listed buildings, www.seppeltsfield.com.au
At Penfold's Barossa Valley estate, groups can become part of the famous wine-making team at the Winemaker's Laboratory and make their own blend from shiraz, grenache and mourvedre, adorned with a personalised label with their name and the title of 'Assistant Wine-Maker'.
Adelaide's small-town charm, unparalleled food and wine, and diverse range of one-of-a-kind experiences make it the ideal destination for an inspiring incentive program.
Getting there
Most flights to the Byron Bay region arrive at the Gold Coast International Airport, approximately 40 minutes from Byron Bay.
Air New Zealand and Virgin Australia fly direct to the Gold Coast from Auckland. Private jet, helicopter and limousine transfers are also available from
Gold Coast airport.
MORE TO DO
Adelaide is the gateway to a host of experiences from wildlife-rich Kangaroo Island to scenic flights or 4WD tours to the Flinders Ranges and Outback.
